You may have seen Lucy Webster previously reporting on the Coldplay concert (follow this link). Here she has ventured to Paris via Eurostar and there are some useful tips on the definition of disabled rooms as well as some tips on ‘ligging’ preferential entry to the sites – Editor.
Having just finished my AS exams, I wanted to go away – and this time, without my parents. So the question arose: where would be a good place for a wheelchair using seventeen year old to have fun? Paris, naturellement. The obvious appeal was the lack of plane travel required to get there – as anyone who uses a wheelchair will certify, planes and airports are nightmarish places.
They will also tell you that the process of boarding a train can be a bit hit and miss, but Eurostar was a breeze. My cynicism was proved unnecessary by the somewhat magical appearance of a ramp, in the right place, on the platform at St Pancras. We were off without any trouble.
And the trip remained almost trouble-free from then on. We had to get a taxi from Gare du Nord (where the disabled toilets were downstairs, but there was no lift) which worried me slightly but passed of ok with a little wiggling on my part. For the rest of our time in Paris we either walked or used the bus network, which involves a lot less hassle than its London counterpart thanks to a button on the outside of the bus that alerts the driver of your need for the ramp. The pavements are also smoother than in London and there was a profusion of dropped curbs. Top marks all round.
My mum found our hotel on the ‘disabled people access’ part of parisinfo.com. Hotel Louvre Sainte-Anne claimed to have ‘a room suitable for disabled guests’ – which is partly true, depending on your definition of a disability. To be fair, the room itself had ample room for my wheelchair and an electric chair would have been fine too – even with two beds. The problems emerged in the bathroom, which was simply too small. I had to unclip my footplates in order to position myself at a right-angle to the loo and the grab rail provided was slanted at an awkward angle. The sink was also marginally too high, meaning that I needed more help than I normally would. A fold down seat was also provided in the shower, but that too was grab-rail deficient. Nevertheless, I managed quite well with a little improvisation and added wobbling. It seemed to me that the bathroom was designed for the elderly, rather than a wheelchair user. I couldn’t access the breakfast room either, which they had informed me when I booked, but they helpfully offered to bring breakfast to our room. In fact, the staff were all extremely helpful.
The best thing about the hotel was its location on Rue Sainte-Anne, just off Avenue de l’Opera, which meant we were midway between the Musée du Louvre and the Grands Boulevards shopping area, both of which provided bus routes to the rest of the city. The river and all its attractions was a fifteen minute walk away, so public transport was hardly necessary anyway. We saw everything there is to see in Paris, and had a wonderful time. The best thing about Paris on wheels is you never have to queue for anything – ever. At Notre Dame the queue was extremely long; we went in through the exit. As I always say, embrace the perks! I would recommend Paris to anyone, but with a warning to clarify what you and your hotel mean by ‘accessible’.
